Food Lust People Love: tuna

Showing posts with label tuna. Show all posts

Friday, September 15, 2017

Grilled Tuna Niçoise Salad #FishFridayFoodies

Not the traditional French recipe from Nice, this Grilled Tuna Niçoise Salad is going to be a favorite for folks who aren’t crazy about canned tuna. Lightly grilled fresh tuna brings a lovely freshness to the plate which includes potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, artichokes, olives and mixed greens.

This month my Fish Friday Foodies group is creating recipes with grilled seafood but, frankly, it’s still pretty hot here in Dubai to stand over a scorching charcoal grill. Fortunately, when I asked our organizer and this month's host, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm if something cooked on a grill pan would be okay, she responded positively.

This is another one of those salads that makes a whole meal. It will easily served three to four people as a main course, perhaps with warm bread or dessert to fill out the meal, or six to eight as a starter.

Grilled Tuna Niçoise Salad

Ingredients
For the salad:
8-10 quail eggs, boiled, peeled and chilled (This can be done the day before.)
7 oz or 200g fine green beans, stems removed
450g or 1 lb baby potatoes
1 jar small artichokes, well drained (5 2/3 oz or 160g, drained weight)
8.5 oz or 240g fresh tuna steak
1 tablespoon lime juice
Drizzle olive oil
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup or 80g kalamata olives, unpitted
Mixed greens (I used baby cos and arugula.)
5 oz or 140g mixed cherry tomatoes

For the mustard vinaigrette: (Makes just under a 1/2 cup or 115ml)
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
5 tablespoons good quality olive oil
1 teaspoon strong Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon whole grain mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
a few grinds of fresh black pepper

Method
Put a large pot of water on to boil with a teaspoon or two of the sea salt. Fill a medium sized bowl with ice and water and set aside.

When the pot of water comes to the boil, put the green beans in for 2 minutes. Fish them out with a slotted spoon and put them directly into the bowl of ice water.

Carefully add the potatoes to the boiling water (you do not want to splash yourself!) and cook till just tender, about 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile make the vinaigrette by adding all of the ingredients into a clean jar and shaking good till they are combined.

Drain the potatoes and put them in a small bowl. Use a sharp knife to cut them into halves, then pour half of the vinaigrette over then, and stir to coat. Set aside to cool.

After you drain the small artichokes, set them upside down on paper towels to absorb even more of the excess water.

As you prepare the rest of the salad, return to the potatoes occasionally and give them another gentle stir. This helps them cool faster as well as making sure that the dressing is being absorbed.

Dry the tuna off with paper towels, then rub it with the lime juice. Drizzle on a little olive oil then season it with a healthy sprinkle of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat your grill pan over a high heat for a few minutes. It’s ready when a drop of water instantly vaporizes.

Grill the tuna steak for 1 1/2 minutes each side, then just 20 more seconds on the first side. Set it to cool on a clean cutting board.

Use the side of a knife to smash the olives so you can remove the pits.

On a large platter, begin assembling the salad. Start with the greens, then slowly build up.

Try to distribute all the ingredients, except the tuna and quail eggs, evenly around the platter.

Use a very sharp knife to cut the tuna into slices and lay them on the salad.

Use a spoon to drizzle on more of the salad dressing.

Finally, half the quail eggs with a sharp knife and add them to the top. We like our egg yolks runny so I gave these pretty much the same treatment as the green beans with just 2 minutes in boiling water, then an ice water bath to stop the cooking.

Enjoy!

Check out all the other lovely grilled seafood dishes we have for you today!

An InLinkz Link-up

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Sunday, December 18, 2016

Tuna Salad Stuffed Deviled Eggs

Mix all the ingredients that make you love tuna salad with egg yolks and pile them in your egg whites to make tasty tuna salad deviled eggs. These are great for a party or a picnic.

For many of the years we lived in Malaysia I held multiple roles at the American Association of Malaysia or AAM. As publications director, I was a voting member of the board of governance for the organization and responsible for our three major publications, the A-Z Directory – a sort of Yellow Pages, the Selamat Datang – our resource book of cultural/educational information for newcomers, and our monthly magazine, the KL American. My other roles were editor of all three and webmaster for our website KLAmerican.com. Busy but productive times!

The board of directors met each month and since the meeting was often scheduled through lunchtime, we’d bring dishes to share. Once, early on, I brought some party sandwiches, the kind without crusts, cut into fancy triangles. The president of the board took her first bite, stopped short and said, “What did you put in your egg salad? Is that tuna?” My response was an incredulous look. “Egg salad? That’s tuna salad! Do you not put eggs in your tuna salad?”

Where I come from tuna salad always has chopped boiled eggs in it. But after an informal poll of the other board members, there seemed to be a cultural divide between northern and southern states. Up north, or so they told me, tuna salad does not have eggs. The funny thing is, they all loved my sandwiches and declared that from then on, they’d be adding eggs. Score one for the southern home team!

A couple of weeks ago I was home alone, busy working, and I decided to make some tuna salad for lunch. I put eggs on to boil. For once, they peeled beautifully. Much too beautifully to be chopped for tuna salad. That’s when the idea struck me. Tuna Salad Deviled Eggs! It’s tuna salad for the low carb crowd. And while those little triangle sandwiches are also great for parties, I have never returned from a potluck with even one deviled egg left on my plate. People love deviled eggs and that's a fact.

I am not a big believer in pickles or celery or other extraneous chopped things in my tuna salad, but if you are, feel free to make this your own by adding some. Sometimes I’ll put a little grated onion but that’s the limit for me. It’s a textural thing.

Ingredients
6 large eggs
1 can tuna chunks in water, drained (drained weight 4.25 oz or 120g)
6 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
Hot sauce, to taste – optional (in other kitchens, not in ours)

To garnish:
Slices of onion
Sprinkle of cayenne pepper or paprika

Method
Hard boil and peel six large eggs. Cut them in half.
Scoop the yolks out and into a small mixing bowl. Dry the whites with a paper towel and arrange them on a decorative platter.
Mash the yolks together with the tuna, mayonnaise, mustard and hot sauce of your choice, if using. I make my own habanero sauce which must go in any tuna, chicken or egg salad. (By the way, my chicken salad also has eggs, as does my potato salad. Just so you know.)

Spoon the tuna mixture into the egg whites. Garnish with some onion and a sprinkle of cayenne or paprika, if desired.

Enjoy!

Whether you are hosting your own holiday party or just need recipes for dishes to take along to a potluck holiday dinner, Sunday Supper is here to help. Many thanks to our host this week, Caroline of Caroline's Cooking and our event manager, Cricket of Cricket's Confections.

Appetizers

3-Ingredient Citrus Salad by Wholistic Woman
Caprese Dip by The Freshman Cook
Easy Persimmon Appetizer with Minted Mascarpone by Caroline's Cooking
Goat Cheese & Basil Stuffed Peppadews by My Life Cookbook
Mom’s Cheese Ball by Grumpy’s Honeybunch
Mushroom Pate by Simple and Savory

Beverages

Boozy Slow Cooker Hot Cocoa by Cricket's Confections
Cranberry Cocktails 3 Ways by Monica’s Table
Sparkling Pamplemousse by Books n’ Cooks

Finger Foods

Cheese Ball Pops by Palatable Pastime
Cranberry Bacon Jam Crostini by Life Tastes Good
Cranberry Bratwurst Bites in Cranberry Jezebel Sauce by Turnips 2 Tangerines
Healthier Sausage Crescent Bites by Momma’s Meals
Hoisin Beef Purses by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
Jalapeño Potato Poppers by Mindy’s Cooking Obsession
Spicy Sausage Tarts by A Mind "Full" Mom
St. Louis Ravioli by Bottom Left of the Mitten
Tuna Salad Deviled Eggs by Food Lust People Love

Mains

Loaded Pizza Stew by Cosmopolitan Cornbread
Roast Chicken with Scallions and Mushrooms by Asian In America
Simple Christmas Pizza by Cooking Chat
Stuffed Turkey Cutlets by Sunday Supper Movement

Desserts

Candy Cane Fudge by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
Easy Lemon Bundt Cake by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Pumpkin Nutella Cookie Bars by Take A Bite Out of Boca
Sweet and Salty Toffee Bark by Pies and Plots

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Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Tuscan Bean Salad #BloggerCLUE

Perfect picnic fare, this delicious salad of kale, cannellini beans, grape tomatoes and canned tuna can be made ahead because it gets better as all the tasty ingredients spend more time together. Seriously, we had only the tiniest bowl of leftovers so it got lost but my daughter reclaimed it from the refrigerator four days later. Still delicious! How many salads can say that?!

It’s Blogger C.L.U.E. time again, where I am assigned another blog from our group in which to snoop and find a recipe to share that fits the current theme or “clue,” which is Picnic. My favorite part of this process is getting to know my fellow food bloggers because although we have a love of tasty food in common, it’s great to find other commonalities and learn about their interests, work, families and the cities in which they live. This month I spent time getting acquainted with Kate from Kate’s Kitchen.

Kate and her husband recently moved house and I’ve been following that story with interest because, you know, moving is kind of my thing. I know the drill only too well and it amuses me to read other people’s stories of the trials and tribulations of a move. Kate has done it with aplomb, still working in the field of finance, cooking deliciousness and recently posting a fabulous mushroom lasagna roll from under a pile of boxes with scant kitchen equipment. She’s an avid gardener so her recipes often take advantage of that fresh, homegrown bounty. I’m so jealous of the rich soil of Indiana!

So, I needed to hunt for picnic friendly recipes! I love taking salads along to picnics or potlucks so that’s where I started my search. I was spoiled for choice on Kate’s blog, bookmarking her Blueberry Watermelon Salad with mint and lemon, Lana’s Chicken Salad with roasted chicken, grapes and pecans, her Lemon Apricot Salad with lemon curd (!) stirred through it, Green Bead Salad with Black Beluga Lentils made with tasty sun-dried tomatoes and salami, and Kate’s lovely Blue Cheese Potato Salad with bacon. I simply couldn’t not make up my mind until I got to the Tuscan Beans with Tuna. Sold! We ate it for dinner with yesterday's Chickpea Moroccan Flatbread.

The couple of minor changes I made:
I was catering for one vegetarian (younger daughter) who isn’t so strict that meat or fish can’t touch her veggies but she didn’t want to eat the actual tuna so I just made little piles of it on top instead of mixing it in. If you want to make this strictly vegetarian, use olive oil instead of the tuna oil. And, obviously, leave off the tuna itself. Kate’s salad called for normal kale, which was on my shopping list, but I couldn’t resist the gorgeous purple kale I came across in my nearby supermarket. Kate adapted this recipe herself from Food Network where they used garlic and cooked the kale. I liked her easy no-cook method but decided to keep the original garlic since we are fans and I totally forgot to buy Italian dressing. Massaging the kale with the oil and vinegar softens it nicely without cooking if you want to serve immediately. Otherwise just mixing everything and leaving it for a while works great too, especially if you are taking it along to a picnic.

Ingredients
3 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons white balsamic
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 cans (5 oz or 151g each) tuna packed in olive oil
1/2 lb or 225g purple kale (I medium head – bigger or smaller will still work.)
1 15.5 oz or 439g can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup or 170g grape tomatoes
3 inner stalks celery with some leaves
3/4 cup or 100g pitted ripe black olives
3.5 oz or 100g roasted red peppers
Salt and pepper to taste

Method
Chop your garlic and put it in a big salad bowl with the vinegar and a sprinkle of salt and pepper while you get on with the rest of the salad. This takes a little of the sharpness off of the garlic.

Cut your little tomatoes in half. Pull the strings off of the celery and chop it into pieces.

Remove the hard stems from your kale and cut the bigger leaves into smaller pieces. Small leaves can be left intact. If you are using thicker dark green kale, slice it finely.

How could I resist?!

Squeeze the tuna oil into the salad bowl with the garlic and vinegar and give it a stir and a sprinkle of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set the tuna aside for later.